1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to input/output devices for use with computing devices, and more particularly, to wrist-worn interactive devices for voice, audio, and/or video communication with wearable personal computers, according to one embodiment.
2. Description of Related Art
Portable, voice-oriented communication devices, e.g. voice-recognition devices and cellular telephones, have enjoyed tremendous popularity. Although such devices have become smaller with advancing technology, many commercially available models have a rather box-like shape and/or are somewhat awkward to carry and use. Other disadvantages of current, portable voice-communication technology include durability problems, inadequate processing power, and excess weight.
Other portable, personal communication devices, for example pagers, have suffered similar problems. One attempt to improve pager technology is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,803,487 to Willard, which is incorporated herein by reference. A remote transmitter broadcasts a page on a first communication channel to a portable radio receiver, which is mounted, e.g., on a user's belt. The receiver then retransmits the page on a second communications channel to a separate, wrist-worn message presentation unit. Communication on the second channel can be by example RF, IR, or ultrasonic transmission. Although possibly beneficial for use in some situations, in essence the Willard device is merely a pager that requires mounting on the body at two separate locations. It apparently has extremely limited processing, input/output and other capabilities, and thus appears to be of very limited utility. Additionally, it suffers rather box-like and potentially cumbersome packaging.
Similarly, EP Patent Publication No. 0,809,172 A2 to International Business Machines Corporation, which is incorporated herein by reference, illustrates a wearable computer having two separate components, one of which is mountable on the body and the other of which is handheld. Communication between the components can be through, e.g., RF, optical, or wired links. Embodiments of the device appear to be somewhat bulky and tending to restrict the user's movement especially when wired links are used and/or as the number of components increases. Further, embodiments of the device have limited processing capabilities.
In contrast, the latest wearable computing devices offer powerful computing technology in a comfortable, flexible package. Commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,285,398, 5,491,651, 5,798,907, and 5,581,492 to Janik, and commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,555,490 and 5,572,401 to Carroll, for example, all of which are incorporated herein by reference, disclose a number of extremely advantageous wearable-computing designs that can flex or otherwise accommodate the shape of a wearer's body. In a manner previously unknown, such designs are providing extensive computing capability in a comfortable, rugged, compact, easy-to-wear package.
Many wearable computing devices typically have relied on head-mounted displays (HMD's) and microphones for visual and voice interaction with a wearer/user. Although an HMD can allow the user of a wearable computing device to operate in basically a hands-free mode, HMD's can be quite uncomfortable to wear, relatively fragile, and can require cables extending from the head to the computer. These cables, of course, can get in the way and are especially undesirable in high-demand use situations, e.g., military applications. Typical HMD's can also block normal vision when not in use. Additionally, HMD's typically use up to 4 to 7 or more watts of power, requiring heavier batteries for sustained operation and adding more weight for the user to carry. Thus, HMD's and/or other head-mounted audio/video input/output devices often present significant disadvantages for the intermittent, highly portable user of a wearable computing device.
A need has arisen, therefore, to provide better visual, voice and other interaction with a user, in both wearable and non-wearable computing environments, and in other communications environments as well. As will be described, embodiments of the present invention combine computing power, durability, comfort and other advantages in a manner unknown in the prior art.